Traveling in Early Years

As a young child there was very little traveling. We did have a car, a Model A Ford, but my Father worked daylight to dark to earn a living so there was no time or money to travel. As I grew to be an adolescent, times were a little better. Daddy always had a truck and would take the Vacation Bible School children to Forrest Park in Ft Worth for our annual picnic. We all rode in the back of the truck as it had high side boards. We also went to church activities in the county monthly.

We went to the Latham Springs Church Encampment every year each summer after the age of 13. Mr. Jordon took us on his big truck with all our bedding and clothes on it along with the young people riding on the top of the baggage. That was fun.

When I got to High School Iris, my cousin, invited me to come to Corpus on the bus and visit for two weeks every summer. That was a big thrill to get to ride a bus all the way to Corpus Christi, Texas. They lived in the middle of the oil patch there. It was a big city then, but not as big as Ft Worth. They had two boys at that time and we would ride around every night and see the lights and out to North Beach Amusement Park. It was a real treat.

When we moved to the farm in 1939 everything was rationed from sugar to shoes. However living on the farm, we had tire stamps and Daddy could buy tires when no one in town could. We never missed church on Sunday however except one Sunday when we got up,  Daddy came in the house and said we have three flat tires so don’t think we can go today. He had just bought a 1934 Ford and the tires were no good. He had traded in our Model A for it and had new tires on the Model A. So we stayed home.

Between the Church Camp and Corpus Christi this was all the traveling I did during my stay at home. Most all of my friends had about the same amount of traveling or less.